Bangsamoro Framework Agreement consultation to be held in Cebu today

CEBU, Philippines - Recognizing the existence of Muslim communities in the region, the National Commission for Muslim Filipinos (NCMF) has initiated the very first discussion on the Bangsamoro Framework Agreement today at the Cebu Grand Convention Center.

About 250 participants are expected to attend the partnership forum that will tackle how our Muslim brothers and sisters all over the country will benefit from the agreement signed on October 15, 2012 between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

NCMF-7 Director Malo Manonggiring said that despite being a predominantly Christian province, Visayans ought to know the agreement terms.

“This partnership forum is very important because all their questions about the agreement will be answered since we have speakers from both parties that signed it,” Manonggiring told The Freeman.

Representing the government of the Philippines is Presidential Assistant on Muslim Concerns Yasmin Busran-Lao.

Dr. Safrullah Dipatuan, chairman of the Bangsamoro Development Authority, will attend on behalf of the MILF.

NCMF-7 records show there are 122,504 Muslim individuals in Central Visayas. About 60,000 of them are doing business in Cebu.

Manonggiring said that most of our brothers and sisters in the region are only here temporarily for commerce and that they have never left their permanent residence in Mindanao.

“Which is why we need to consult those presently residing in Central Visayas. Because they will still be directly be affected by the Bangsamoro agreement,” he explained.

Once implemented, Bangsamoro will replace the existing Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

The 14-page signed agreement provides that Bangsamoro will have its own justice system, taking into consideration the customary rights and traditions of indigenous people.

The Central Government’s powers on defense and external security, foreign policy, trading, monetary policy, citizenship and nationalization, and postal service, were also specified in the agreement.— /FPL (FREEMAN)